Epoxy coating compositions are used to treat surfaces to protect against corrosion and other forms of wear and tear caused by use and the environment. The types of surfaces treated include concrete, metal, and other surfaces. Effective coating compositions are prized not only for the quality of protection, but also for easy and efficient transportation, storage, and application. Thus, a good coating composition will not only protect the surface, but also be easy to apply and quick to cure.
The use of epoxy compositions containing volatile organic solvents has fallen out of favor even though these compositions provide exceptional anti-corrosion protection. The organic solvent based compositions are environmentally unfriendly and their use has been curtailed. Solvent free epoxy coatings often require sophisticated, non-standard equipment for application.
Other epoxy coating compositions provide good protection if applied at the recommended thickness. This recommended thickness requires multiple coats and each coat must be cured or set before another coat may be applied. Each additional coat requires additional labor, which increases the cost of application. Other coats may be applied at greater initial thickness, but require more time to set up. Coatings applied at greater initial thicknesses may also introduce flaws caused by voids from evaporation of volatile components during the curing process.
The combination of an epoxy resin and cement in a coating composition has been used previously to create cement compositions suitable for overlaying concrete. For example, prior products include cement based compositions with an epoxy used as “mortars,” “toppings,” or “overlays” to coat Portland cement concrete or metal surfaces. These compositions use a small portion of epoxy to enhance the cement composition and the final compositions are thick like cement and resembles cement. These are generally two-component compositions having a dry-mix component and a wet-mix component which are combined to form the final composition for application to surfaces in thick films, typically greater than about 20 mils. Other compositions have used an epoxy to bind a cement composition.